This is a slighly edited version of a December 11, 2020 story on WickedLocal.com:
Local Rotary clubs in District 7930 and Rotary International collaborated to deliver a $44,950 grant to non-profit Care Dimensions, the largest hospice- and palliative-care provider in Massachusetts, to be used for the purchase of personal protective equipment for their frontline workers.
“Care Dimensions is grateful for Rotary’s support of our work providing hospice and palliative care in more than 100 communities by funding critical personal protective equipment for our staff who are on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Patricia Ahern, Care Dimensions president and CEO. “We know it was a massive team effort and we thank Rotary District 7930, individual Rotary clubs in the Greater Boston area and international clubs. Rotary makes an extraordinary impact on our communities and throughout the world, and we are honored they have chosen to assist our care teams on the North Shore and in Greater Boston.”
This Rotary Foundation COVID-19 Global Grant is the first of its kind for local Rotary clubs. For the first time in history, The Rotary Foundation provided a grant to Rotary District 7930, representing 47 clubs in northeastern Massachusetts.
“Rotary focused their project on providing PPE to the medical staffs located throughout District 7930, to protect them from contracting COVID-19 and, in turn, protect their patients,” said District 7930 Governor Betsy Manzelli. “Our Rotary District is excited to be collaborating with and supporting Care Dimensions during this pandemic.”
In addition to funding from the Rotary Foundation and District 7930, contributions from Rotary District 2650 and the Rotary Club of Kyoto South, both on Japan, made this grant possible. Leadership in Kyoto, Japan, were available to assist Boston, their sister city, with this humanitarian project. Rotary clubs in Boston, Burlington, Burlington Breakfast, Gloucester, Lexington, Marblehead, Topsfield, Boxford and Middleton also supported this project.
“When the COVID-19 pandemic hit our region hard, I saw the opportunity to address the needs of healthcare providers firsthand,” said Joan Arsenault, District 7930 governor for 2019-2020 and a professional health-care provider. “I also realized that the Rotary Foundation was an incredible resource and could help us address the shortage of PPE and food insecurity.”
“For the first time in our district’s history, a Rotary Foundation grant is happening locally,” said Julia Phelps, past trustee of the Rotary Foundation and Rotary International director. “That’s the beauty of Rotary: people helping people they’ve never met but knowing they are making a difference and saving lives.”
For more information on District 7930, click here.
